Jaws of Ammit
by Aileen Rao
Summary: Four spirits, trapped inside mystical ancient artifacts for more than 3 millennia have returned to the world of the living, each one trying to fulfil their purpose. Seto Kaiba's Battle City turns out to be more than just a card game tournament and ancient history seemingly repeats itself all over again. (An altered version of the Battle City Arc/AU/Major deviations)
1. Prolouge I - Nephthys

**"Loving you was like going to war; I never came back the same."** _  
_

 **-** _Warsan Shire_

* * *

She died with the living Horus's name on her lips as he gently laid her body down into the red desert's sand.

His name, spoken under her last breath was both a confession of love and a plea for forgiveness to the young ruler of Egypt, whose wine-colored eyes were filled with sorrowful loathing for the beautiful traitor as he looked down on her dying form.

On the horizon Ra perished, shedding the remnants of the day's light on His son, engulfing Him in a warm golden glow. In this light, His hair resembled a crown made of a fiery blaze, symbolizing His innate regalness and rendering a material crown made of gold redundant.

He was born a god _and_ a king. Too late had she realized she could have never taken from nor shared with Him His divine right as his consort.

A single tear – a token of guilt – left crimson eyes before they forever fell shut.

.

.

.

The shadows bore her company in the depths of darkness. They would occasionally talk to her, whispering to her the tale of a young Pharaoh and his older bride. She enjoyed listening and pretending to have never heard of those stories before. The shadows kept repeating and it was not long before her own memories were nothing more to her than a part of the Nameless Pharaoh's secret.

Occasionally, she witnessed the living world through someone else's eyes but nothing interesting ever happened; it was always just the same with those poor women who were chosen to bear the burden of being the Millennium Necklace's wielder.

A man. A ritual. A wedding. A deflowering.

The birth of a child. The birth of a son.

Beatings. Bruises. Rape. Death.

Repeat.

Those who had devoted their lives to guard the secret of the Nameless Pharaoh were pitiful. The members of the Ishtar family considered themselves to be privileged by the Pharaoh but were in fact only too blind to see that they were cursed.

They had never seen the sun, except for the young women who were married into the family to provide them with fresh blood in intervals in between generations of incestuous offspring.

She wondered why they willingly made themselves slaves to a dead King who would have never even wanted such submissive worship. The young regent she fell in love with would have never imposed a family's bloodline with a duty so ignominious.

It was disgusting and tragic at the same time and after a few centuries she refrained from making her presence known to the woman who was bearing the Millennium Necklace.

Another two and a half millennia passed before a baby girl was born into this depressing world, who finally aroused her curiosity. She watched her grow up through her mother's eyes and felt the same kind of happiness when she beheld the girl for the very first time.

Clear blue eyes and silky raven hair. The girl was by far the most beautiful child the Ishtar family had produced in those three millennia. There was something special about the infant girl and she could not await the day the Millennium Necklace would be given to her. From that day on, she promised to protect her and grant her power and wisdom. This miserable life beneath Egypt's sands was not meant for the woman she would grow into and she swore the whole world would one day lie at that girl's feet.

Isis was the name given to her. And the spirit found it bewilderingly fitting. _Isis_ , the patron goddess of all great rulers of Upper and Lower Egypt and associated with the Pharaoh's Great Royal Wife as the spouse of Horus.

It could be no mere coincidence. This azure-eyed girl-child was destined to play a large role in the Nameless Pharaoh's return.

When Isis's mother died after giving birth to a golden-haired baby boy and was left with a cruel father, the spirit longed to console and give the semi-orphan comfort, but was unable to provide her with all the affection she held, unless the Millennium Necklace entered the girl's possession. Before then, she was useless to Isis for after all, she was just the spirit of a long dead woman, trapped inside the Necklace she once owned herself.

But when the raven-haired girl turned thirteen, she finally seized the magical object the female spirit thought to be rightfully hers.

She had no relation to the motherless girl nor could she replace the role of a mother because she had never given birth to and cared for a child. But she could be a sister to Isis, guiding and protecting her, making sure she would only experience the best of live.

If the beautiful child was Isis, the spirit would be Nephthys, supporting her in the same way the goddess's twin sister was said to always have done.

Nephthys – as a darker aspect of Isis – complemented her twin sister and helped her when goodness and light were not strong enough to conquer obstacles that could only have been remedied by evil and darkness.

She thanked the ancient gods for granting her a second chance in the form of the young Isis, regardless of her being her reincarnation or not.

Nephthys – as she liked to call herself from that moment in time on – swore to offer Isis everything good life had in store for her.

She deserved to be desired and looked up to, she deserved to possess all the treasures this world could provide and deserved to experience everything enjoyable in life. But she was only deserving a man worthy of _her_. And unless this time would produce a man like the Nameless Pharaoh, there was no man on this planet who would ever know the deepest of her love. She would make sure of it.


	2. I - Encounter

" **A lie that is half-truth is the darkest of all lies."**

 _―_ _Alfred Tennyson_

* * *

His skin was a shade so light. He looked so pale compared to the image her mind was still able to recreate. He was more petite, too. Instead of a lean but sculpted body he possessed a very slender, almost scrawny looking frame. But he was still as beautiful as he had ever been to her because she knew it was _Him, her King, her God_.

His eyes. Those wine colored eyes, a mix of crimson and purple, held the same determination and strength they had always had.

His hair was the same rare tri-colored mane he had sported in ancient times. She longed to run her dainty, tanned fingers through the silky thickness of it.

This was not his body but she craved to touch it nonetheless. Her own body was long gone, too, buried deep underneath Egypt's sands, lying in a tomb unbeknownst to all humankind.

But she was comfortable with her reincarnation's physical shape; _the shape of Isis Ishtar_.

Isis had grown into a beautiful woman and rivaled even the Necklace's spirit in beauty. She could even spot traces of her own complexion in the raven-haired woman's facial features and her original eye-color manifested itself when she had taken over Isis's body, turning a cold icy-blue into the color of blood.

" _My King_ …" she breathed as she approached the Pharaoh. "It is really you."

Her eyes, now rather ruby of color than a bloody crimson, sparkled with a thin layer of tears and her hands clasped the fabric of her silky dress across her chest. "Oh how I _mi_ – longed to finally meet you, my King."

Wine-colored eyes widened in mild surprise as they beheld the willowy figure of a beautiful dark-tanned woman. And then their eyes locked for the first time in 3000 years.

An unbearable yearning crept up inside of her. She wanted to kiss those lips that were not his; wanted to touch the pale skin that did not belong to him, wanted to … _make love_ to this body even though she had never met its original owner. It was terrible. She had to compose herself.

The Pharaoh showed no sign of remembering who she was and her heart sank a little despite knowing the reason why. How could he remember when he had erased every single memory of his past life?

"Please forgive my impudence, my King. I am Isis Ishtar, member of the tomb keeper family who watched over your tomb and guarded your secret for three millennia." she introduced herself, bowing a little and speaking her fundamental lie.

She was not Isis Ishtar. She was just the spirit of a dead Egyptian woman controlling her body.

Seemingly speechless, the Pharaoh simply uttered: "Uhm, It is nice meeting you _… Isis_." and nodded his head in acknowledgement.

His voice. It was the same deep but smooth voice he possessed in ancient times. Its sound made her heart light up and she smiled.

"Wait, aren't you the woman who hosts this exhibition?" a brunette girl with azure eyes, who seemingly accompanied the King, asked.

"I am indeed." Isis answered, her smile waning. "I chose to arrange this exhibition here in Domino City, Japan because my millennium item told me of your return and the location I would find you, my King." she explained, solely talking to the Pharaoh.

His eyes fell upon the golden circlet around her slender neck. He recognized the eye of Horus, sitting in between the gap of the woman's protruding collarbones, gleaming with the same dangerous golden sheen like the one engraved on his own millennium item.

"It is called the Millennium Necklace. And if it allows me, I am able to view glimpses of the future and the past."

"The past?" the Pharaoh asked, exited.

"I know you seek answers, my King." she spoke with the most sincere empathy. She knew how it felt to be a spirit locked inside a millennium item for centuries because she had experienced it herself. The only difference was that she knew who she once had been. The King on the other hand dwelled inside the Millennium Puzzle without knowledge of whom he was or where he came from. A sad and depressing existence.

"But there is not much I can tell you. Please forgive me, my King." she said, truly sorry but only telling the half-truth. She did not know the crucial information to unlock his secret but she knew much more than just a little.

"No, no; don't apologize. I would be more than thankful if you told me what you know, Isis. There is not a thing I know about myself despite the fact that my origin may lay in ancient Egypt. Therefore any hint or clue would be more than enough." he spoke in an understanding and grateful tone.

She felt ashamed of herself for lying to the one she loved. But what else was she supposed to do? She feared she would vanish entirely if she lost him again.

"Allow me to explain, my King." she said. "As you might have already guessed by looking at the stone tablet, you used to be a Pharaoh ruling over Upper and Lower Egypt 3000 years ago." She pointed at the large stone with an elegant movement of her dainty hand.

"So the image carved into that stone is … this is really me?" the Pharaoh asked absentmindedly, just to convince him of this unbelievable truth.

"Yes, my king." Isis confirmed. "And you might have also guessed who the second person depicted on the tablet might be."

"So it is really Kaiba?!" the brunette girl exclaimed.

"More or less." the Egyptian woman said plainly. "Kaiba is this man's reincarnation. He used to be a sorcerer and the Pharaoh's most trusted advisor." Her crimson eyes traveled from the girl back to the overwhelmed Pharaoh. "But his greatest rival, too." she added.

The sorcerer, Seth; she used to control him, used him for her own twisted and evil purpose. He had never been a traitor to the king. It was her who made him become one.

But she would never confess it or rather she _could_ not because the King would never be able to love her if he knew all the despicable things she had done.

Confusion was visible in the Pharaoh's burgundy-colored eyes. He longed to know more, needed to hear more from her. It pained her seeing her beloved like this but she could not reveal much more than this to him, yet; at least not in this place and not in this annoying girl's presence.

"My King, are you alright?" she said, worry clearly audible in her voice as she approached the Pharaoh in a slow but graceful movement. His gaze was fixed on the woman's slender shape and he tensed up a bit when she stopped right in front of him.

Crimson eyes glistened with the sheen of fresh tears as she looked into the wine-colored eyes of her King. His host's body was much smaller than his own body used to be. Even Isis was taller than the King. He could have hardly been taller than 5"3 whereas Isis's body height was 5"5 adding up to 5"9 plus her high heeled shoes. She had to literally look down on the Pharaoh before her, which felt a bit unusual but she ignored it. Her mind was way too clouded with passion and yearning that such an irrelevant fact could bother her.

" _Oh my, king, my beautiful king_ …" she whispered softly as her hands reached up to gently cup his face.

A small gasp escaped his mouth as he felt the touch of nimble fingers on his cheeks. He did not flinch but he seemed to tense up even more at the contact of a stranger's skin.

" _I am so sorry, so sorry …_ " the spirit of the millennium necklace breathed as a single tear left her eye, leaving behind a black trail on her bronzed cheek.

Wide, trembling burgundy eyes took in the fine features of her face, trying to focus onto something there. They wandered from the perfectly maroon painted lips up to a small, straight nose and from there even higher up to a pair of kohl rimmed eyes graced with long lashes, heavy with mascara.

'She is indeed very _pretty'_ , the bewildered king thought but retracted the thought immediately. No, pretty was not the right word to describe her. Anzu was pretty. But Isis looked too solemn to be called a pretty woman. She was beautiful and graceful, yes but there was something sinister and ancient in the depths of her crimson eyes that – despite the fact that she was looking pained – made her nearness feel not only overwhelming but _dangerous_. But said feeling vanished when another black line formed on her cheek.

"… Isis, are you okay?" The Pharaoh said suddenly, his brows furrowed in concern. "There is nothing you have to be sorry for."

Her eyes widened and she withdrew her hands from his face; the tone of his voice hauling her out of her trance-like state.

'What am I thinking?'

"Forgive me, my King." she said and backed away. "I shouldn't have done that." Isis bowed rather deeply to the Pharaoh, demonstrating her inferiority and devotion to her king.

"It's fine, really. There is really nothing to forgive. If somebody has to apologize, it is me. After all I made you – you were crying be – ." he stopped speaking when he recognized the emotion on her face. It was shame. "Let us just forget about it, _Isis_." The King's voice sounded warm and gentle when he spoke her reincarnation's name. And even though it lit her up inside, she longed to hear him say her real, original name because the last time he did, the contempt in his voice was unbearable listening to.

"Thank you, my King."

A small smile graced the Pharaoh's lips. "Can I ask you something?" he questioned, still smiling but rather sadly, now.

" _Anything_ , my king!" Isis exclaimed.

"Do you know my name?"

She gasped. He had even sealed the memory of his own name away, how could she have forgotten? After all it was the tale of the Nameless Pharaoh who died a young adult, which was written in the ancient texts.

Isis cleared her throat, covering up her initial shock. She had to tell him; he deserved it. Knowing his name would at least give him some sense of identity.

"In fact, yes. I do know your name, my king." she admitted. "You were given the name … _Atem._ " The way his name rolled off her tongue made it sound like it was the most sacred and divine thing on earth.

"Atem…" the Pharaoh repeated softly to himself. And then he smiled. This time it was a genuine smile that expressed contentment and gratefulness.

The King took a step forwards her. "Thank you, Isis." he said as he reached for her hand, gently planting a kiss on its back.

Warmth spread throughout her body as his pale lips touched her tanned skin ever so lightly. The passion she held for him was still as strong as 3000 years ago. And she would make sure Atem was going to return those feelings like he once had.

* * *

 **Consider my OC spirit some kind of Yami Isis/Ishizu. :'D At least that is what I somehow intended for her to be. I'm not really sure if one could call this "side pairing" Atem/YamiXIsis/Ishizu but there are going to be a lot of side pairings anyway. Thanks to everyone who is reading this story. :)**


	3. II - Confrontation

" **Jealousy is just Love and Hate at the same time."**

– _Drake_

* * *

When Yuugi went to bed that night, he was not able to fall asleep. The image of that mysterious Egyptian woman kept haunting his thoughts. He did not like her. Something about that Isis Ishtar made him feel uncomfortable. There was a certain darkness about her, he had sensed it very clearly. It resembled the kind of darkness that used to surround his Other Self when he had first solved the Millennium Puzzle and he hated to be reminded of it. But this was not the only reason he disliked her. The way she had interacted with the spirit of the millennium puzzle, interacted with the Phar – no, with _Atem_ – that was what she had claimed to be the spirit's name – still bothered him. Yuugi had felt it too, the touch of her fingers against his cheeks, caressing the lines of his jaw in teasingly gentle motions to sooth his Other Self's confusion. Atem was so overwhelmed by her ministrations that he had forgotten to block their mind-link to prevent Yuugi from feeling what he had. He had sensed it all; the light shiver her touch had caused him, the warmth spreading throughout his body and the fuzzy feeling in his lower abdomen … Yuugi knew what it all meant. And he did not like it; in fact hated it.

" _Partner_?" a soft voice spoke. "Did I do something wrong?"

Amethyst eyes opened only half-way to look at Atem's semi-transparent form sitting on the edge of his bed, watching over him. A worried look was edged into the features of his handsome face.

"Other Me? Why are you awake?" Yuugi countered the question. "You should be resting."

"I am sorry, aibou. I know but …" the spirit paused and lowered his burgundy eyes. "I cannot shake the feeling you are mad at me."

"I am not." Yuugi said harshly as he sat up in bed, regretting it immediately as the worry in his Other Self's face turned into pain. "Forgive me. I didn't mean for it to come out like that." He apologized. "What I meant to say is; no, I'm not mad at you, Other Me."

The spirit's face lit up. "I am relieved. I do not like causing you negative emotions. It pains me seeing you ill at ease." he paused, locking eyes with Yuugi. "If there is something I did, which still bothers you, please tell me, my partner."

The boy's brows furrowed in guilt. The spirit was still so utterly devoted to him that it scared him sometimes but he knew his devotion only showed how much he cared about Yuugi as a friend, a partner. He deserved to be told what ailed the boy.

"Listen, Other M-, _Atem_." he began speaking, stressing the spirit's real (?) name to emphasize the seriousness of his confession. "I'm not mad at you but you have in fact done something, well not exactly wrong but … something that slightly _disturbed_ me."

Wine-colored eyes shot up, wide with shock. "Oh, Yuugi-sama! Tell me, what have I done? I swear I – "

The boy cut him off with a wave of the hand. "Don't call me that." he said, a slight expression of disgust creeping into his features as he spoke. _Yuugi-sama._ He hated when the Pharaoh still called him that. It brought back all the awful memories of the times when Yuugi had no control over the spirit that dwelled inside his millennium item and threatened the lives of his dear friends.

The Pharaoh bit his lower lip. Shame was the dominant emotion on his face but there was also remorse and self-hatred. He would never forgive himself for what he had done to the boy and his friends even though they had all long forgiven _him_.

Again, guilt rose up inside of Yuugi and made him feel nauseated. But along with it came anger about how Atem was able to make him feel that way and he spat at him what he had initially intended to carefully explain to him.

"You know what? Actually I am somehow mad at you." he began ranting. "This woman, _Isis_ or whatever her name was … the way she touched you; I felt it all. Every goddamn emotion she caused you I experienced the same way you did! I hated it!" Yuugi said repulsively. "You can't simply do this! After all it is _my body_ and not yours."

Blank horror was visible on the Pharaoh's face. Never had Yuugi been so disturbed about something he did. How could he have possibly forgotten to shut down the mind link that connected their thoughts, their feelings and their sensations? How could he have been so stupid? He should have known it would hurt his aibou, his _darling Yuugi-sama._

The sprit gasped. "Partner, my _dear_ aibou I am so, so sorry. I should have known. Oh, please forgive me – " He reached for Yuugi's hands but the boy pulled away despite the fact that he could not touch him physically anyway.

"I know we share a body but you have no permission to do with it as you please." the furious boy interrupted his Other Self. "Doing _those things_ with another person is still my prerogative. You have no damn right to take that away from me!"

Confusion and bewilderment coursed through the Pharaoh's mind. He sent those feelings to his partner over their link in the attempt so signalize him that he did not know what he meant.

' _Yuugi-sa- Aibou ..._ , what do you mean? I do not understand. Please explain to me what I have done wrong. All I want is to make it up to you. Oh, please I do not want to cause you pain any longer!'

Receiving, Yuugi sent him back thoughts he had always kept hidden away from his Other Self. They were only a small part of what he had secretly fantasized about since he was a teenage boy of fourteen. His fantasies involved Anzu, his school mate and childhood friend whom he always had a crush on.

Atem's jaw dropped slightly as he took in the vivid images of his partner making love to the blue-eyed teenage girl. Though these thoughts were the most common thing for a boy Yuugi's age, the spirit seemed devastated by them.

" … but." he stuttered. "… I would never use your body for such an act." His voice was thin and weak and subtle defeat resonated as he spoke. Being aware of having hurt _his_ Yuugi-sama hurt Atem, too. But knowing that his dear partner lusted for the pretty brunette hurt even more.

The Pharaoh shut down their link immediately; he did not want to cause the boy even more pain by letting him know that he disapproved of his passion for the girl. Who was he to penetrate Yuugi's privacy even more than he already did? And yes, Yuugi was right; they shared a body and this body did not belong to him but to his darling aibou. He had no right to judge the actions he dreamt of committing with it.

The sight of his downcast Other Self made Yuugi realize what he had just done. He was furious, yes but lashing out at him like this was not what Atem had deserved. His Other Self was just a millennia old spirit devoid of any memories of his past life, holding on to the things people told him about his origin. There was no proof that the things Shadi and Isis had told him were actually true. He could not even be sure that _Atem_ was the name he was given by the people who once must have been his parents. Hell, there was not even concrete evidence the spirit had once been a living, breathing human being. To Yuugi, the ancient stone tablet did not prove _shit_. The carved image _resembled_ the shape in which the spirit of the puzzle presented himself to Yuugi but in the end it could have been anybody's image. Maybe his Other Self was no Pharaoh, maybe he was some sort of god or even demon or maybe – at the end of the day – he was and always had been only a ghost, a spirit that had been trapped inside this mysterious ancient artifact his grandfather had once given to Yuugi.

But who knew?

Yuugi sighed deeply. "Other me?" he said abjectly, brows furrowed in a mix of pity for the spirit and self-blame. "I am sorry. That was – what I said it was, it was … unfair." The boy lowered his large purple eyes before meeting Atem's very defeated but alert gaze. The Pharaoh was hanging on every word Yuugi said. His forgiveness was all he wanted.

"It is … well, it's just that I don't like the way that woman tried to get to you, Other Me." he admitted, looking to the side and averting the Pharaoh's gaze.

"Tried to get to me? Aibou, I do not know what you mean." Atem's gaze was apologetic.

Yuugi ran a hand through his blonde bangs and grabbed a fistful of hair, shaking his head slowly. What was it with the spirit? He had always been so alert, so cautious and ahead of everybody when sensing a person's darkness. But in regard to this undeniably beautiful but dubious Egyptian, his Other Self acted all naïve and dewy-eyed. _This was so unlike him_. And it made the boy furious.

"So you did not sense it, did you?" A sarcastic smile graced Yuugi's lips.

Bewildered, confused, deeply sorry-filled eyes stared at the petite boy. They were proof enough that his Other Self was not aware of the effect the woman had had on him.

Infatuation. It was pure infatuation. And the saddest part was Atem did not even know how blinded and besotted he was with Isis. Sure there was no denying it; she had an alluring effect on those around her – and Yuugi could not absolve himself of that fact – but the sinister, wicked vibe he got when looking into her blood-colored eyes definitely overweighed the first impression of beholding a lovely woman.

"Don't you think there is something quite _off_ about that woman?" he said, shrugging his shoulders. "I mean, what I want to say is I personally don't trust her." he told his other half in a languidly sounding voice. By now he was too tired and wary of raising his voice at the spirit of his puzzle.

"Honestly, partner I _do_ trust her." Atem replied with a very slight but still audible note of defiance in the tone of his voice. "She was the first one to have answers to all the questions that ail me since you have solved the puzzle."

Yuugi's eyes widened. Was Atem turning tables? The boy did not fail to notice the accusation hidden beneath his words and he could not help but admitting there was some truth to it. In fact, the boy was the one who had awoken the spirit of the puzzle from his slumber. But was he the one to blame for his Other Self's misery?

The amethyst-eyed boy swallowed before very carefully posing the question. "Are you blaming _me_ for the _inconvenient circumstances_ you are in?"

"Gods, no I don't." the spirit replied but looked to the side, not able to hold Yuugi's anxiously inquisitive stare.

"Fine." he said as he sunk into the pillows, being too tired to get this fight going on any longer. "Let's stop this conversation; it's going nowhere anyway and I'm tired."

"You are right." The sprit admitted, defeated. "Good night, my partner and sweet dreams."

There was no answer to that.


	4. Prolouge II - Shesmu

" **Lust is to the other passions what the nervous fluid is to life; it supports them all, lends strength to them all: ambition, cruelty, avarice, revenge are all founded on lust."**

 _\- Marquis de Sade_

* * *

Watching his older sister die had been not as painful as he imagined the loss of a close relative would feel. Much to his astonishment the circumstances of her death had been tragically comic to witness; being killed by the one she loved seemed much too ironic to be devastating.

He remembered his lover chuckling darkly at the miserable sight of Egypt's Great Ruler, having the blood of his treacherous future queen on his hands and looking down on her corpse with utmost loathing. And although it was his beautiful sister's lifeless body that was lying there in the desert's sand and at the feet of the doomed King whose reign would soon come to an end, he could not resist laughing along with his white haired consort.

The horizon matched the color of the wrathful Pharaoh's darkened eyes that held the promise of making them pay for everything they had done.

He felt excitement course through every vein of his body, making him feel the most alive. This challenge, he could hardly wait to take on the King who had lost everything. He was hungry like a starved lion and blood-thirsty like a warrior.

Dull blue eyes flashed with predatory pugnacity. It was basic instinct that aroused him in the same kind of way his lover, the King of Thieves did, and he was avid for the coppery taste of blood, lusted for the feeling of taking the life of the man who wrongfully ruled this land and yearned for sweet revenge.

The real battle was just about to begin.

.

.

.

Wretchedness was the one thing he hated most in human beings. And after his spirit had been sealed inside the Millennium Rod by the young King, he realized that wretchedness was the one primal vice all men had in common.

His sister had fallen victim to her own wicked scheme and had been beaten at the cunning game she was playing, going down disgracefully and without poise, begging for forgiveness that would never be granted to her.

The Pharaoh, praised as a brave and powerful ruler, had been unable to protect those dearest to him and could only prevent the world's entire devastation by sealing away his own spirit along with the spirits of those who were allegedly responsible for the harm already done. He sacrificed himself but left behind a shattered kingdom without a sovereign to guide _his_ people, leaving them to die from drought, famine and misery.

These two sorry individuals were nothing more to the spirit of the Millennium Rod than a traitor and a coward, a self-proclaimed queen and a king who failed his entire nation. Their misery and weakness had fueled an ineffable hatred inside of him that kept his spirit alive and as thirsty for vengeance as the day he fought the Pharaoh.

And inside the darkness he rested, embraced by the shadows, which in his slumber told him about the return of the Coward King. They whispered to him the tale of Shesmu the God of Execution, Punisher of the Unrighteous and Slaughterer of the Damned who would drink the blood of the Usurper King like red wine.

Every so often, the shadows presaged the birth of a boy with golden hair and dull blue eyes, who resembled the spirit's long decayed body in appearance and who one day would bear a grudge against a nameless King whose secret he was chosen to protect.

He liked the soft whispers of the shadows and kept listening until the day a baby boy was born into the family of tomb keepers, who were just another bunch of wretched human beings, living beneath the earth like rats in the sewers. On that fateful day he was finally woken from his slumber, ready to observe the prophesized boy until the day he finally inherited the Millennium Rod.

Alertly, he watched the boy – _Malik_ – grow up through the current owner's eyes, paying attention to a small but visible spark of loathing for the Nameless Pharaoh, which had already ignited at this young age. His father, a despicable man obsessed with a self-imposed duty, only contributed to Malik's hatred by forcing the tomb keeper's doctrine on his young son.

He could feel his power grow every time he witnessed the slow but steady destruction of that poor boy's innocence but when the secret of the Nameless Pharaoh was carved into his back during a ludicrous ritual, Malik's hatred grew so strong, the spirit was able to finally make his existence known to the abused boy without connecting through the millennium item.

Introducing himself as Shesmu the god-demon and Lord of Blood, he promised the boy the freedom he desired so much if he only let him in and allow him to provide him with guidance. Young, helpless and naïve, Malik gave in to the spirit's compelling promises of a fulfilling life underneath the blue sky and yellow sun as the Chosen King, who would forever do away with the Coward King and finally yielded to temptation.

Reborn from the pain and suffering of a ten-year old, the spirit murdered Malik's father, freeing the boy from his imposed duty but seized possession of his body and – unbeknown to the child – forced his own ideology upon him.

The sight of crimson liquid splattered against the stone wall, the lifeless body of his reincarnation's father and the boy's sibling's appalled faces brought back the fundamental lust for bloodshed. Having control of Malik's young body, he felt a heart beating and a pulse throbbing; the sweet sensation of being alive enthralled him and he could not help but tasting the blood sticking to the dainty hands he was able to control.

Possessing a body which looked much like the one he once owned himself and being able to exist in the world of the living, he could not wait to face the Nameless Pharaoh with whom he still had a score to settle. This ancient battle was not over, yet and had never been decided in the first place.

But despite having made it this far, it seemed the spirit's time had not come, yet. Another pathetic human being called Rishid – brother of his host – seemed to put obstacles in the spirit's way by being able to suppress his dark influence on Malik and shed light on the darkness inside him on which the boy's cruel alter ego feasted.

But the spirit was patient. Rishid was not much more than a mild nuisance that one day would resolve itself. Instead of controlling Malik, he guided him from within, giving incentives and planting ideas into the young boys mind he mistakenly considered his own.

He was confident his time would soon come. The Coward King had not even been reborn into this world, yet; probably still floating in darkness and trapped inside his own millennium item. There was no need to rush things, so the spirit waited inside the darkness, snuggling up against the shadows that kept him company for so long, fantasizing about the Pharaoh's downfall and the reunion with his long lost lover.


	5. III - Tower of Strength

" **your hand touching mine. this is how galaxies collide."**

– _Sanober Khan_

* * *

On the horizon the sun stood high, reflecting from Japan's Sea and shining brightly on Domino City which lay ahead.

Malik, clad in a purple robe, stood on his speed boat's bow, observing the Pharaoh's every move through the eyes of his various mind slaves scattered all around the city. He felt the wind on his skin and running through his golden hair. The salty smell of the Sea lingered in the air surrounding him and he exhaled deeply before addressing his most loyal servant.

"It's time to send my quiet doll, don't you think Rishid?"

Kneeling before his beloved brother, the older man said: "Yes, Malik-sama. This time, victory will be yours and you will finally be able take what is rightfully yours."

"I shall teach the Coward King a lesson." Malik chuckled, darkly. "He will know the wrath and power of an Egyptian God."

.

.

.

"You look worried, my partner." the Pharaoh spoke as his semi-transparent form appeared beside Yuugi. "The imminent battle against Malik ails you, does it not?"

Looking to the side and frowning, he replied: "Yes but that's not _really_ it. It's…", he paused, sighing, "The conversation we had the other night is what still bothers me. You and me fighting; it just doesn't feel right."

"I understand, partner. I felt my heart tear a little wider with every word spoken and the darkness that once controlled me slowly creeping in again." He spoke, lowering his eyes. "It hurt."

As he listened to the spirit's confession, Yuugi's large purple eyes widened. "Other me … I wasn't aware it caused you _pain_." He spoke with audible guilt in his shaking voice. "I'm so, so sorry."

Yuugi bit his lower lip hard, cursing himself for being so ignorant about his Other Self's feelings. He should have known how much agony the fight had caused him but instead of paying attention like he had always done, Yuugi was busy with being selfish lately, worrying about his _privacy problem_.

'Self-absorbed fool.'

The boy's hand moved on its own, reaching out carefully to rest on the Pharaoh's arm but dropped instantly when the awareness of being unable to touch his Other Self hit him once again like a blow to the head.

At times like these Yuugi wished for the ability to physically touch the spirit because some feelings could not be expressed by mere words and the sound of one's voice. The reassuring touch of a hand sometimes said more than a million words of condolences or excuses. It was a pity, really.

"Aibou …" the Pharaoh said. "I know how you feel and so do I. Don't fret, I'm sorry, too."

Yuugi's eyes lit up immediately as he met the King's softened features, which were so similar to his own. He wondered, though how someone who looked almost exactly like him could be so strikingly handsome. The boy felt a certain warmth creep into his cheeks and had to tear his gaze away from those hypnotizing burgundy eyes that held ancient mysteries and longing for answers in them.

"Can you promise me one thing?" Atem said, smiling.

"Anything, Other Me."

"Let us never fight again. I need us to be in balance, you know. And I need you to trust me completely." he said with a seriousness Yuugi could not fail to notice. "Your trust and friendship is what I cherish most, my partner."

Yuugi's lips curled into a smile. "And you have both, Other Me." he assured. "Maybe we should learn to tell the other if something bothers us. This way we won't fight the way we did if one of us comes up with something to complain about." he said, shrugging his petit shoulders. "What do you think? I mean it's a start and most likely something like the other night won't happen again. Don't you like that idea?"

The Pharaoh's sudden inquisitive stare made Yuugi feel nervous. His soft, almost loving gaze had returned to the usual solemn expression he always wore when facing an opponent in a duel.

"Actually, I was wondering if we could start right away with being more honest with each other." Atem asked his Partner.

"S-sure. Is there something on your mind?" the amethyst-eyed boy asked hesitantly.

Closing his eyes, the spirit inhaled deeply before exhaling and opening them again, saying: "Please partner, don't get me wrong but I need to know about you and Anzu – "

"Finally, found you Yuugi!"

The boy's head shot to the side only to behold the sight of an outlandish looking bald punk guy with too much piercings on his face and kohl around his eyes.

"Who are you?!" Yuugi exclaimed but immediately noticed the unnecessary need for this question as he saw the eye of Wadjet glowing on the punk's forehead. "Malik, so you're still not showing yourself in person."

A distorted chuckle escaped the ridiculous looking mind-puppet's mouth. "You don't deserve this honor unless you survive this fight." he said, shoving his card deck into the slot of his duel disk. "Now Yuugi, tell the Coward King to show himself and face me. This is his battle after all."

"You're the coward here, Malik." Yuugi snarled before a golden light engulfed the boy, revealing the subject of the tomb keeper's hatred.

Taking off Yuugi's navy blue jacket and flashing a daring smile, the Pharaoh said: "I'll accept your challenge. Let's duel."

After a few rounds, Atem was finally facing the power of one of the Egyptian God Monsters he used to control himself in ancient days. Its breath – although nothing more than the life-like sensation of Seto Kaiba's ingenious hologram technique – felt hot against the Pharaoh's skin as he looked up into the eyes of Slifer the Sky Dragon, hovering above.

A sudden dizziness came over Atem and bright white light flashed before his eyes, blinding him. As the light faded he beheld again, the sight of the god monster with its red-scaled body floating high up in the air. But it was a different sky he looked into, underneath which lay a desert's sand, stretching out in all cardinal directions.

Atem blinked twice before finally realizing he was having a vision of a time long past and was awestruck as his eyes fell on a dark-skinned, more toned version of himself sitting on horseback, leading an entire army of warriors.

The King, dressed in armor and with sword in hand, looked determined to strike every minute. His wine-colored eyes, rimmed with thick black kohl lines were hard and focused; the golden crown on his head reflected Egypt's setting sun and around his neck hung the Millennium Puzzle. He looked majestic and poised; the ideal image of a ruler.

On the horse to his right sat a man that resembled Seto Kaiba, also dressed in armor and armed. The man's cold blue eyes were afire and he looked furious and pained at the same time like someone had taken something very important from him. Above him, the White Dragon was floating in the air beside Slifer, crying angrily.

Also in the front row and to the Pharaoh's left sat a graceful, crimson-eyed woman on another horse. She sported a short black tunic and some armor, too. Her long black hair, glinting aubergine in the evening sun, was tied in a high ponytail. She wore the Millennium Necklace around her slender neck and some sort of forehead protector adorned with the Uraeus on her head.

Atem could not believe the scene before him; he was witnessing a moment of his past life and had he not felt the gentle squeeze of a delicate hand, he probably would have fallen unconscious from the experience of this vivid vision.

"Other Me, this is … is this really you?" Yuugi said, holding on to Atem and pointing the index finger of his free hand at the ancient version of his Other Self.

"I think so …." He whispered, subconsciously tightening the grip around Yuugi's smaller hand, seeking support. "This scene, it looks like a battle; maybe some kind of war."

"Yeah …" Yuugi mumbled as his lilac eyes fell once again upon the King. They travelled slowly from his toned calves up to defined thighs straddling the black Arab and from there even further up to the Pharaoh's bejeweled fingers holding the reins up to lean but muscular arms graced with many golden bands. The boy could not help the warmth spreading inside his lower abdomen as he took the sight of the god-like creature in. This version of his Other Self was not simply handsome but beautiful and Yuugi was utterly mesmerized by this bronze-skinned ruler.

"Partner!" Atem suddenly said, galvanizing Yuugi. "Take a look at their opponent."

He gasped as he recognized the white haired man. "That man looks like Ryou?!" he said, having a hard time focusing on the actual scene again.

Yuugi felt his Other Self's palm becoming sweaty. He was overwhelmed and excited. And Yuugi could feel the tension radiating from Atem. Finally, some answers revealed themselves in the form of a strange vision and the boy was witnessing it, too, hoping for the sake of Atem's sanity that it was genuine.

The man that looked like the ancient version of Yuugi's friend Ryou wore the Millennium Ring around his neck and led a whole army of worriers on horseback himself. A devilish smirk graced the man's face as he addressed the Pharaoh. "This will be your downfall, _your highness_." he said mockingly before his smile faded, turning into an expression of immeasurable hatred. "You and your entire kingdom will pay for what you have done to my kin." he promised, his voice rumbling with wrath. "And you, you bastard." the dark-tanned man hissed, pointing at the ancient version of Kaiba. "Who do you think you are, using my sister's power?! You will pay dearly for making her your whore and inflicting death on her. I will make sure of it."

A blonde man, bearing the Millennium Rod, put a hand on the other's shoulder. "I'll make him suffer the most painful death imaginable by using his own Millennium Item. Just leave him to me, Bakura." he said, smirking insanely.

Atem's jaw dropped slightly and he looked at Yuugi, his burgundy eyes trembling. The scene he witnessed did not make any sense to him and he was not able to process the whole ordeal of reliving a random piece of a past life he did know nothing about. He looked frightened and helpless, holding on to Yuugi for dear life.

The boy imagined it to be terrifying and exciting at the same time, as though waiting for your father sending you a birthday card or not, hoping to whatever being above he had not forgotten your birthday yet again. A terrible comparison Yuugi figured, but he did not come up with another situation he could relate to, resembling the way his Other Self must have been feeling at that very moment.

Seeing him like this however hurt Yuugi, too. And he wanted to take a part of his Other Self's burden away by sharing the pain. Like they say: misery loves company and somehow there always is some truth to old adages like this. Squeezing the hand – he was finally able to touch – reassuringly and smiling at Atem, the violet-eyed boy told him he was there, no matter what and that everything was going to be alright as long as they kept up their mutual support. The terrifying confusion in Atem's eyes waned as he listened to his Partner's words and a small smile started to form on his lips before the flash of blinding white light reappeared, bringing both of them back into reality.

"Yuugi, you're disappointing me. You should've figured out by now how to beat his Egyptian God Card."

"Kaiba!" Atem exclaimed, snapping out of his trance.

The tall brunette and his kid brother stood on an elevated platform near the riverbank, observing the duel between Malik and the Pharaoh. With his arms folded across his chest, Kaiba darted an anticipatory glance at him, literally telling him that every card has a weakness, no matter how powerful it may seem and that he – as the King of Games – was ought to find that particular weakness.

Atem understood. He needed to focus and collect himself in order to win this. There was too much at stake for him, his friends and maybe the entire world if he let Malik win. And he knew he could do this because he was not alone. As far as he could remember Yuugi was and always had been there fighting by his side, giving him strength and vice versa. They complemented and belonged to each other; and no matter what fate might hold for them; this fact could never be altered.

The freaky punk, Malik controlled let out a distorted laugh. "There's no way out for you, Pharaoh. Losing this duel also means losing your life. My mind-slave here is programmed to follow you wherever you go until he will finally kill you and take that puzzle from you." Another insane laugh escaped the villain's mouth as he spoke.

"That won't happen." Atem said, smirking with regained confidence. "I figured out a way to beat your Egyptian God Card. There's an error in your reasoning, Malik; Slifer's power is _not_ infinite." He lectured his opponent. "Its attack points depend on the amount of cards in your hand, yes; _but_ there's a limit to the cards in your deck. And once you deck out, you lose."

Inside the puzzle, Yuugi felt Atem's renewed confidence rushing through their mind link and flooding his own being, granting him the same experience.

It was not long before the Pharaoh put his strategy into action, beating Malik.

"This is not over, Pharaoh!" Malik hissed through the mouth of his slave. "You will pay for what you have done to my family. I will make you experience the sensation of losing what's the most important to you and you will know what it means to make sacrifices. Be prepared."

And with that Malik released his mind slave from his control, his body sinking to the ground. With his own mind and soul long gone, taken with the help of Malik's millennium item, there was nothing left but the punk's empty shell. He was not dead but not really alive either; the organs were functioning fine but the brain was damaged beyond recovery.

"And the winner is: Yuugi Mutou." Mokuba announced, raising an arm in the air. Next to him, Kaiba snorted with closed eyes as if declaring Yuugi the winner was absolutely redundant and his success was this duel's only possible outcome.

"Now, hand over your rarest card to your opponent." the black-haired boy said as he made his way over to the unconscious man, lying on the ground with his deck scattered all around him. "Hey mister, are you … alright?" he asked, touching his shoulder in the attempt to wake the man up, but it was futile.

"We need to call an ambulance, Seto. This guy here seems to be knocked out." Mokuba stated matter-of-factly, as he took the rarest card from the punk's hand.

"Anyway," he said, addressing the Pharaoh, who was already approaching the younger Kaiba brother, "Slifer is yours now, Yuugi."

Taking the card, the Pharaoh nodded in acknowledgement.

"Don't get too attached to that card, Yuugi," Kaiba suddenly said, "because I am about to challenge you to a duel and take it from you."

The Pharaoh shot a contemptuous glance at the taller man from where he was standing, burgundy eyes flashing. As usual Kaiba did not acknowledge the situation's seriousness and failed to notice _, or rather denied_ the fact that there was much more at stake than just the recovery of the title King of Games. In that regard the brunette was selfish, blinded by false ambitions and risking lives of the innocent. Ever since Atem had first met Seto Kaiba, he realized the man's stubborn pride was dangerous, posing a threat to the people he held dear.

"I will not challenge you, Kaiba; at least not for now. I have more important things to do then to battle you right now." Atem said, turning his back on the tall brunette.

"How dare you!" Kaiba hissed. "How dare you to disrespect me."

"I am not." he reassured.

"Then duel me and prove it, Yuugi." Kaiba shot back.

"Don't you see there is much more at stake than the honor that comes with a title? The lives of my friends are in danger and I need to stop this psychopath before it is too late." the Pharaoh told him despite knowing reason does not appeal to Seto Kaiba.

"You're nuts."

He sighed. "It is not like I don't understand; of course you doubt what has been revealed to you – I guess it is usual for human beings to deny the things they cannot explain. And since you are a man of science it is not easy to convince you of the truth behind the ancient powers that threaten to destroy us if we don't take action."

"I can't believe you're telling me this – how delusional are you and the dumb bunch you call friends really, Yuugi?" he sneered.

"Just forget it for now, Kaiba." the Pharaoh said, walking away from him.

"Hey, wait. I want my duel."

Turning, Atem looked at Kaiba with gleaming burgundy eyes, a complacent smirk forming at the corners of his mouth. Yuugi was much more cunning than the Pharaoh had actually known and he was glad his partner had come up with that brilliant idea of his.

"I have a request for you, Kaiba. If you agree I will duel you sooner than I have initially planned to do." he said, his smirk becoming a rather smug smile.

"What is it you want?" Kaiba spat at the smaller male.

It was rather quite funny how most human beings were so easy to lure with only an insinuation of what they craved. If they saw only the slightest chance of getting their hands on what they wanted, most would succumb to every lure, hint or suggestion that might lead them to what they desired. Seto Kaiba was no exception to that basic rule.

One could characterize it as pathetic but Atem refrained from doing so. He was not the one to judge living, breathing beings.

"Help me find my friends." he simply stated.

The young CEO narrowed his cobalt blue eyes dangerously as he looked at his one and only rival. "So you want me to find Katsuya and the rest of those imbeciles and after that you'll duel me? Did I get the last part right?" he questioned, stressing his last words carefully.

"You did." Atem confirmed.

"Fine then." Kaiba said, lowering his eyes as he spoke into the collar of his white trench coat. "ROLAND! I want you to come here immediately"

A clear _"Yes, sir!"_ could be heard from Kaiba's speaking device and it did not take his employee more than two minutes to arrive at their location by helicopter.

The Pharaoh's brows rose slightly as the brunette pulled him rather roughly by the arm. "Come, Yuugi. The sooner we'll find your dumbass friends, the sooner I'll get my hands on your god-card. I hope you're not suffering from aviatophobia – and if so, I don't care."

Dragged inside the helicopter, they took off.

* * *

 _ **I had totally forgotten about this story here on fanfiction . net until I recently rewatched DSOD and remembered what I had in mind for this fic. I rummaged through my files and ta-da! found two more chapters I had already written. Lately, I feel quite inspired to continue. I'm glad I took notes though. :') Anyway, this is going to be a complete AU and is only loosely based on the Battle City Arc and its entire storyline.**_

 _ **A little foreshadowing at the pairings my fic will feature;**_

 _ **Main:**_

 _ **Atem X Yuugi**_

 _ **Yami Marik X Bakura (King of Thieves)**_

 _ **Side:**_

 _ **OC (Yami Isis) X Atem**_

 _ **Seth X Kisara**_

 _ **Mai X Jonouchi**_

 _ **Yuugi X Anzu**_

 _ **and some implied pairings.**_


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